Engaged at Eleven
by cardiffictionlocked1895
Summary: AU. Loki is saved by a girl belonging to an Asgardian nomadic tribe, whose father is forcing her to find a husband. No need to say who she chooses. Pre-Thor. Part 2 of Life as We Never Knew It series. I do not own Marvel or any of its characters
1. Chapter 1

{Chapter 1- Loki}

_Where'd you find 'im? _

_The river. _

_As usual. _

The first thing I noticed when I finally regained consciousness was the cold. Hushed voices murmured above me as I struggled to identify them and remember why I was freezing.

The world came back to me in blurs. At first all I could see was white, ringed with black. I blinked, and realized I was staring though the opening of a cave at...snow?! Where the heck was I? I rolled over in an attempt to wake myself up from this insane dream and almost fell of my surprisingly narrow bed. No, it was more like a cot. This was just too weird. That paired with the strange feeling I shouldn't be here fed my growing anxiety and the last bits of sleep faded away. All of the sudden the murmurs became louder voices. Voices I immediately didn't trust.

"...Really need to find a new place to look, Mila-"

"Are you kidding me? Have you seen him? Think I scored big with this one."

"Well, he is a looker, I'll give ya that much. But who is he?"

"Why don't you ask me?"

The two women- well, it was more like a women and a girl about Thor's age- jumped with they heard my voice. The woman stared at me like she was sizing me up, but the girl was looking at me like she couldn't believe I was real, and it took her a moment to find her voice before she spoke. She meant to sound calm, but I could the hear nervousness underneath.

"So who are you?"

I sat up. "Give me one good reason I should tell you, and I will."

The girl opened her month to speak, but the woman cut her off.

"You were drowning, and Mila saved you and brought you here. We wanted to take you back home, but it was obvious you weren't from around here, or anywhere near here, for that matter. We've moved camp since then, so we're probably too far away to even think about going back. So seems you'll be staying here with us. It would be convenient for us to know your name."

"I don't get a choice with this, do I?"

"No."

"I am Loki."

"Loki," The girl called Mila savored my name. "How old are you? I'm fourteen."

"I'm twelve in February."

Mila smiled widely. "Good. That's good. Only a few short months away."

I leaned back, finally getting a good look at my surroundings. Mila and the woman were sitting a few feet away around an open fire, which provided the only heat and light in the cave. Spread out around us are about thirty more people, all sleeping on cots like mine.

There was something I was missing here, but I didn't care to find out what. The sooner I could get home, the better. "So when are we going to be back in the area where... you found me?" If I could get there, I could make my way back home easily enough.

Mila's smile vanished. This was the question she had been hoping I would never ask. "I don't know, Loki... there wasn't much for us at that stop, so it could be years before we go there again."

"What?! You can't do this to me! I have a family-"

"A family that let you almost drown." Mila was clearly angry, though she was trying hard to hide it.

"They didn't 'let' me drown. The river was too fast-"

"Why can't you just accept you're not going back?" There was a barely concealed threat in her attempt at a normal voice.

"Mila, give him time. He'll see that you speak the truth eventually." The older woman's soothing tone made me want to smack her. This couldn't be happening to me. Still I managed to keep a poker face.

Mila turned sharply to face her. "Eventually?! You know my deadline's in six months! I don't have that much time, Rica!"

"What deadline?" They ignored me and continued screaming at each other.

"We could try to make your father see sense-"

"Oh, so this is about my father now?"

"This was always about Heqet!"

"We've tried to make him 'see sense' before! It never works! He's set on it!"

"He was always a stubborn man-"

"How dare you call my father stubborn-"

"Not to mention obsessive-"

"Shut your mouth!"

"Since when were you in charge of me?"

"Since-since..." Mila was grasping at straws now. "Since you insulted Father!"

"Well, I don't take it back." Rica turned away toward the fire.

"Will you children be quiet so I can sleep or do you want me to come over there?" A boy was sitting up on one of the "beds". The way he spoke made me think he was imitating someone.

"HOW DARE YOU MOCK MY FATHER!" Apparently I was right. Mila launched herself toward the boy, who wasn't much older than me, and landed on her face on the dirt floor a few feet away. A few people snickered, and one yelled, "Nice job, Octavian! You really floored her!" And several more people burst out laughing. I had to bite my tongue to keep from joining in with them.

Mila pulled herself onto her feet using a nearby cot, seething. I can tell that she wanted to yell some more, but just about everyone in the cave had woken up by then.

"Who is he?" asked a girl who can't be more than four, pointing at me. The whole group turned to stare at me.

Mila rushed over to introduce me before I can say a word. "This is Loki. He's staying with us now." Her tone sounded oddly possessive as she glared purposefully at a few other girls in one corner who had started to show blatantly obvious interest in me. What is with these people?

"Hello." I said as casually as possible. Some people nodded in acknowledgment but don't do much else. Newcomers were apparently not a rarity there. The group began to disperse now that the entertainment was gone. Only then did I really start to wonder if Mila and Rica are right; what if I never saw my family again?

Suddenly something heavy slammed into the side my head, shattering against the floor as my sight was overwhelmed by black.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two- Thor

It had been three days since I had last seen Loki. I could still see the horrible scene replaying itself in my mind- the ground on the riverbank beneath his feet abruptly crumbling, the black, sucking water below. It haunted me. I remembered waiting for him to come up again, but he never did. Loki. My little brother. Gone. Forever. I couldn't accept it; neither could my mother. So for her sake, Father kept looking, hoping that, against the odds, Loki had survived. He came up with an idea: it was possible that a local tribe had saved him, as they were always looking for boys to take in. I asked him why, but he wouldn't tell me. Regardless, the possibility kept Mother sane, but it did have a flip side. The tribes were nomadic. They could be anywhere by now. It would take a while to pinpoint the exact tribe and where they were; the uncertainty would continue. What if it was all a false hope? What if he really was dead, and we were just working ourselves up over nothing? What then?


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three- Loki

I awoke again to the bumpy movement of a wagon. Mila and Rica were again talking quietly above me, and it sounded like they were once again discussing my "attractiveness."

"... Haven't seen the likes of him ever before in my life, Rica. I'm such a sucker for his eyes, really, but he has the most beautiful green ones, and his voice, it's so perfect... oh, Rica, he's the one, I'm sure of it."

It felt like Mila was stroking my hair, which was extremely uncomfortable and a complete invasion of my personal space, not to mention of my dignity, but I wanted to hear Rica's response, so, even though my instincts were screaming at me, I stayed silent.

Rica sighed. "Maybe he is, Mila, but he's... royalty, a prince probably." -I fought the urge to stiffen reflexively. Had I made it that obvious?- "He can pretend all he wants, but his clothes and how he talks and the way he moves gives him away."

Mila snorted quietly. "Yeah, so he's presumably one of the rich and powerful. And?"

"And he isn't just another kid off the streets. He's a prince, and that makes him indispensable to his family. They're not going to give up so easily in finding him." Rica replied.

"Like they're going to find us anytime soon. We're miles away from that river, and it's not likely they'll search here." Mila said. "I just wish we didn't have to be so mean to get him this far." She gingerly touched the tender spot on the side of my head, where they knocked me out, and I winced involuntarily. Thankfully, she doesn't notice.

Rica snickered. "Oh, yes, Lord help us if we even temporarily mar his exquisite beauty for about a day or so. C'mon, Mila, his hair covers it."

She sighed. "I know, but that doesn't mean I want to hurt him." She paused. "He's just so beautiful."

"Stop it. If you keep saying things like that when you're married, he's gonna be so full of hisself." Rica retorted, jokingly.

"But, seriously, Rica, doesn't it seem like fate that I just happened to come across the most beautiful boy I have ever met just months before my deadline? I've even got a little while to convince him that we belong together, you know, 'til he's twelve. Soon as I do, he'll come around, and then we will get married, Rica. It's not too late for me after all."

Wait a second- married?! I was eleven, and no way was I marrying this kidnapper. I mean, she did save my life, but that didn't automatically make me want to marry her! Against my better judgment, I once again decided to stay quiet. If I spoke up now, I'd be furious, and I had no desire to be knocked out again, so I would wait a bit longer.

Rica hesitated. "Yes, I suppose he'll come around eventually." She replied softly.

Then they were both silent for a while, and I eventually decided it's safe to officially wake up. I groaned and opened my eyes to see Mila's face inches from my own. I leaned back and she sat up. "Sorry." She breathed, and I knew she wasn't just apologizing for the unexpected closeness.

"'S okay," I sighed. "It's not the first time I've ever gotten kidnapped."

Her eyes widened. "No, Loki. We weren't kidnapping you. We were just..." She trailed off, realizing the truth in my words. "We had to. If there was another way, I swear I wouldn't do this to you. I'm sorry, Loki."

I shrugged. "It's fine." Not really, but I have better things to worry about besides her regret. I decided to change the subject. "I am starving, though."

Mila jumped up from her seat, eager to please me. "We have... bread, I think."

"That works." She handed me a slice and sat down across from me, still a little close for my comfort, but obviously not hers.

She watched my movements intently as I tear a piece off the hunk of bread.

"So you're a... prince, huh?"

I snorted. "You're a quick one."

"And you're dad's, like, the king?"

"Well, yes, that would be the main idea."

"Speaking of which..." Rica was staring uneasily out of the back of the wagon at something moving on the horizon.

"What, Rica?" snapped Mila, as if Rica had interrupted a really important conversation, which, through Mila's eyes, she probably had.

Rica turned to her, her face grave. "Mila, hold him down."

It dawned on me then that my family did come for me after all. I didn't have to marry this freak!

Mila smiled apologetically at me. "Sorry again, Loki." And then she threw herself on top of me, knocking us onto the floor.

"Ow." I said, a little more than irritated. She not only managed to smack the side of my head that still hurts against the hard wood in the most painful way possible, but she also pinned herself way closer than necessary on top of me, which is, to say the least, very, very, awkward.

"Oh, sorry." she said for about the fifth time in the last ten minutes, but she doesn't let me up. She was surprisingly (not to mention aggravatingly) strong for a fourteen year old.

Mila turned her head back to Rica. "Now what?"

Rica shushed her. "Now we wait for them to leave."

The wagon-train (it literally was a train, the wagons were all connected) was completely silent for a minute before it jolted to a stop, and, for the first time in days, I heard familiar voices.

"... thought he might be with this tribe."

"His name is Loki. Black hair, green eyes."

My father and Thor were both here! I wanted to shout back something, but as soon as I opened my mouth, Mila stuffed what remained of my half-finished bread into my mouth. Ugh. I really hated this girl. I settled for pinching her arm as hard as I can. I feel her cringe.

Now the caravan driver was speaking. "... someone might have mentioned him. Yes, it was Mila, I think, but you'd better hope it's not. Her deadline's almost here, and she seemed pretty attached to him. You might not get him back." I wondered if they know he wasn't kidding.

Footsteps approached. Fortunately, I'd already swallowed the bread, but yelling was worthless now. They were about to find me. Mila let me get vertical only to shove me against the side of the wagon. The door banged open, and suddenly Mila was leaning down and pressing her lips on mine. I couldn't pull away; she kissed me forcefully, and there was nothing I could do until she finally broke away, grinning, after over a minute. "Wasn't that amazing?" she asked me, breathing hard.

"Yeah. Very _breathtaking_." I hissed the last word out between my teeth, glaring, my sarcasm untouched by my breathless voice.

And then things got complicated.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four-Thor

So when we finally found Loki, there's a random girl making out with him like there's no tomorrow. And once she stopped...well, if looks could kill, she'd be dead in a heartbeat, the way he was glaring at her.

Not to mention, she was super over-dramatic.

"Daddy! They're trying to take my prince!" She screamed as soon as she notices us, her voice shrill with disbelief. What the heck was her problem? "You have got to be joking," my father muttered, clearly irritated, but weren't we all? Loki just rolled his eyes. Then his eyes got really wide as he looked at something over my shoulder. Suddenly something smacked me in the back of the head as the ground rose up to meet my face. I heard Loki swear as my sight got more and more blurry, before it was eclipsed by stars.

I was brought back into consciousness by a sharp pain in my leg. My eyes jolted open, and my gaze automatically fixated on the scary amount of blood flowing from the deep gash. I flinched at the sight of it. My head started to spin, but I forced myself not to surrender to the suddenly welcoming darkness that was lingering around the edges of my vision.

"Psychos." I jumped at the sound of my father's rough voice. "Should have known not to mess with these people. Humanity is not one of their strong points. Unfortunately, insanity is."

"Why-why did they do this?" For the hundredth time, I wondered exactly who 'these people' are.

"To keep us from leaving. Such barbarians. Always so dramatic. Not to be vain or anything, but it's really stupid to do that to royalty. I don't think they know you were my son, considering the size of that wound."

"So what's that girl's attachment to Loki from? He's only been gone two days." I managed though the pain.

"These people"-why did he keep calling them that?- "have a tradition that involves girls marrying outsiders. I don't really know that much about it. I'm sure that's what happened with your brother, which means this will as hard- if not harder- as I thought it would be. Obviously that girl is pretty high up-"

Father was interrupted by a loud bang as a boy about my age jumped from the wagon behind us onto ours.

"Hey." The boy nodded at us, sitting down on a crate a few feet away. "I'm Octavian."

"Thanks for sharing. What do you want?" I was annoyed with this kid almost immediately. Maybe it was just that he was one of them, or it might be because he may or may not have just come here to make a spectacle of us, but he bothered me.

He looked surprised. "I came to help you escape, but if you don't want me to..." He stood up.

"No, wait!" I said before he can jump back to the other wagon. "We could use your help." I admitted.

Octavian smiled. "Ok, then. Let's go." He motioned for us to get up.

"Hold on." my father said quickly. "What about Loki?"

Octavian snorted. "You mean the kid? No chance for him, I'm afraid. Mila's too obsessed with him. It might not go over well if you tried to bring him."

My father was standing now. "I think we can risk it. Thor, stay here while I go...figure this out."

Octavian sighed. "Alright. I'll see what I can do. No promises, though."

I sighed and leaned back, trying not to think about all the blood and how badly this could go.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five- Loki

You just know it's going to be a great day when you wake up engaged to an extremely bratty girl you barely know.

Welcome to my life.

"Isn't it easier now, Loki, to see what you really want now that your annoying family's out of the picture? And it will only get better!" Mila said cheerily.

"What do you mean, out of the picture? What did you do with them?" I worked to make my voice casual.

"Nothing yet. The Council hasn't reached a decision. Some of them still want to let them go." She snorted. "Like that's going to happen. My father isn't known for his forgiveness."

"Forgiveness? What did they do, exactly?" She was leaning closer now, obviously hoping for a replay of yesterday's kiss, so I was glad I already had a question at hand.

She frowned. "I would have thought you'd already known. Maybe you're not as smart as you look. But that's okay, because you're pretty enough to more than make up for it." Did she just call me pretty? "They tried to take you away from me. And that just can't happen."

Has she even considered the fact that I might not want to marry her? Obviously not, from the look on her face she's not wondering at all if I might not feel the same way about her.

Successfully deterred from kissing me again, Mila got up and started cutting off more chunks of bread with a serrated bread knife, and suddenly I got an idea. An extremely unfavorable idea, but an idea all the same.

I checked to make sure Rica's still asleep. She was. This crazy plan might actually have a chance to work.

The next part I really hated. I got up and walked over to Mila, and I (reluctantly) circled my arm around her waist. "Bread again?" I asked, trying to sound nonchalant.

She didn't seem surprised by my abrupt change of attitude at all. Wow, this was going to be easier than I thought.

"Yes," she said, staring intently at me in a way that scares me more than what I will have to do next. "Is that okay?"

"That's perfect." Ugh, did I really just say that? I seriously hate this plan.

Luckily, though, it worked. She smiled and then leaned closer, pressing her lips to mine. Much as I want to jerk away, I didn't. I waited for a moments to know for sure she's sufficiently distracted, and then I slowly reached my free arm behind her and gripped the handle of her bread knife in my hand. Mila never suspected a thing until I had kicked her knees out from under her and pinned her to the floor, the knife less than an inch from her throat. She opened her mouth to yell, but I cut her off.

"If you scream, I will kill you."

She looked like she believes me. Fortunately for her, she's smart enough to know to stay silent. "Let me get something straight for you: I don't care what you or Rica or your idiot father says, I am not marrying you. Ever." I paused. "Now I'm going to leave and get back to my home, and you're not going to go after me, because, if you do, I will go after you. And this time, I won't be alone. Understand?"

She nodded, slightly.

"Glad we're on the same page."

I stood, walking toward the open back of the wagon, still holding the knife. "Oh, and one more thing: I never got to say thanks. For saving me, I mean. I'm not entirely vicious." I tacked the last line at the end after seeing the strange look on her face. Then, without another word, I stood precariously at the edge of the wagon, gauged the distance between it and the next wagon, and jumped...

...landing right next to Thor.

I gasped when I see the gaping wound in his leg. "What happened?"

He glanced at his wound. "It's nothing."

I could tell he was going to question me about how I escaped, but the wagon train suddenly came to a jarring halt.

Then I noticed a shape on the horizon. It's getting bigger every second, and it didn't take long for me to realize what it is.

"Father!"

He was riding on a horse, clearly borrowed, and he stopped next to the wagon. "Get on!" I pulled myself up onto the horse behind him, and somehow Thor managed to as well. It's not until the wagon train is a speck in the distance when I remembered the knife. I glanced at it, and how I was absentmindedly holding it, defensively, and remembered how I threatened to kill Mila. I began to wonder, for the first but the not last time, what I have become.


End file.
